Date: 08 Jan 90 1727 PST
From: Don Knuth
Subject: Virtual fonts: More fun for Grand Wizards
Keywords: fonts
Many writers to TeXhax during the past year or so have been struggling with
interfaces between differing font conventions. For example, there's been a
brisk correspondence about mixing oldstyle digits with a caps-and-small-caps
alphabet. Other people despair of working with fonts supplied by manufacturers
like Autologic, Compugraphic, Monotype, etc.; still others are afraid to leave
the limited accent capabilities of Computer Modern for fonts containing letters
that are individually accented as they should be, because such fonts are not
readily available in a form that existing TeX software understands.
There is a much better way to solve such problems than the remedies
that have been proposed in TeXhax. This better way was first realized
by David Fuchs in 1983, when he installed it in our DVI-to-APS
software at Stanford (which he also developed for commercial
distribution by ArborText). We used it, for example, to typeset my
article on Literate Programming for The Computer Journal, using native
Autologic fonts to match the typography of that journal.
I was expecting David's strategy to become widely known and adopted.
But alas --- and this has really been the only significant
disappointment I've had with respect to the way TeX has been
propagating around the world --- nobody else's DVI-to-X drivers have
incorporated anything resembling David's ideas, and TeXhax
contributors have spilled gallons of electronic ink searching for
answers in the wrong direction.
The right direction is obvious once you've seen it (although it wasn't
obvious in 1983): All we need is a good way to specify a mapping from
TeX's notion of a font character to a device's capabilities for
printing. Such a mapping was called a "virtual font" by the AMS
speakers at the TUG meetings this past August. At that meeting I spoke
briefly about the issue and voiced my hope that all DVI drivers be
upgraded within a year to add a virtual font capability. Dave Rodgers
of ArborText announced that his company would make their WEB routines
for virtual font design freely available, and I promised to edit them
into a form that would match the other programs in the standard
TeXware distribution.
The preparation of TeX Version 3 and MF Version 2 has taken me much longer
than expected, but at last I've been able to look closely at the concept of
virtual fonts. (The need for such fonts is indeed much greater now than it
was before, because TeX's new multilingual capabilities are significantly
more powerful only when suitable fonts are available. Virtual fonts can
easily be created to meet these needs.)
After looking closely at David Fuchs's original design, I decided to design
a completely new file format that would carry his ideas further, making the
virtual font mechanism completely device-independent; David's original code
was very APS-specific. Furthermore I decided to extend his notions so that
arbitrary DVI commands (including rules and even specials) could be
part of a virtual font. The new file format I've just designed is called
VF; it's easy for DVI drivers to read VF files, because VF format is similar
to the PK and DVI formats they already deal with.
The result is two new system routines called VFtoVP and VPtoVF. These
routines are extensions of the old ones called TFtoPL and PLtoTF;
there's a property-list language called VPL that extends the ordinary
PL format so that virtual fonts can be created easily.
In addition to implementing these routines, I've also tested the ideas by
verifying that virtual fonts could be incorporated into Tom Rokicki's dvips
system without difficulty. I wrote a C program (available from Tom) that
converts Adobe AFM files into virtual fonts for TeX; these virtual fonts
include almost all the characteristics of Computer Modern text fonts
(lacking only the uppercase Greek and the dotless j) and they include all
the additional Adobe characters as well. These virtual fonts even include
all the "composite characters" listed in the AFM file, from `Aacute' to
`zcaron'; such characters are available as ligatures. For example, to get
`Aacute' you type first `acute' (which is character 19 = ~S in Computer Modern
font layout, it could also be character 194 = Meta-B if you're using an
8-bit keyboard with the new TeX) followed by `A'. Using such fonts, it's
now easier for me to typeset European language texts in Times-Roman and
Helvetica and Palatino than in Computer Modern! [But with less than an hour's
work I could make a virtual font for Computer Modern that would do the same
things; I just haven't gotten around to it yet.]
[A nice ligature scheme for dozens of European languages was just published
by Haralambous in the November TUGboat. He uses only ASCII characters, getting
Aacute with the combination |.
\yskip\hang|@!fnt_def4| 246 |k[4]| |c[4]| |s[4]| |d[4]| |a[1]| |l[1]| |n[a+l]|.
Define font |k|, where |@t$-2~{31}$@><=k|.
\yskip\noindent
These font numbers |k| are ``local''; they have no relation to font numbers
defined in the \.{DVI} file that uses this virtual font. The dimension%|s|,
which represents the scaled size of the local font being defined,
is a |fix_word| relative to the design size of the virtual font.
Thus if the local font is to be used at the same size
as the design size of the virtual font itself, |s| will be the
integer value $2~{20}$. The value of |s| must be positive and less than
$2~{24}$ (thus less than 16 when considered as a |fix_word|).
The dimension%|d| is a |fix_word| in units of printer's points; hence it
is identical to the design size found in the corresponding \.{TFM} file.
@d id_byte=202
@=
@!vf_file:packed file of 0..255;
@ The preamble is followed by zero or more character packets, where each
character packet begins with a byte that is $<243$. Character packets have
two formats, one long and one short:
\yskip\hang|long_char| 242 |pl[4]| |cc[4]| |tfm[4]| |dvi[pl]|. This long form
specifies a virtual character in the general case.
\yskip\hang|short_char0..short_char241|
|pl[1]| |cc[1]| |tfm[3]| |dvi[pl]|. This short form specifies a
virtual character in the common case
when |0<=pl<242| and |0<=cc<256| and $0\le|tfm|<2~{24}$.
\yskip\noindent
Here |pl| denotes the packet length following the |tfm| value; |cc| is
the character code; and |tfm| is the character width copied from the
\.{TFM} file for this virtual font. There should be at most one character
packet having any given |cc| code.
The |dvi| bytes are a sequence of complete \.{DVI} commands, properly
nested with respect to |push| and |pop|. All \.{DVI} operations are
permitted except |bop|, |eop|, and commands with opcodes |>=243|.
Font selection commands (|fnt_num0| through |fnt4|) must refer to fonts
defined in the preamble.
Dimensions that appear in the \.{DVI} instructions are analogous to
|fix_word| quantities; i.e., they are integer multiples of $2~{-20}$ times
the design size of the virtual font. For example, if the virtual font
has design size $10\,$pt, the \.{DVI} command to move down $5\,$pt
would be a \\{down} instruction with parameter $2~{19}$. The virtual font
itself might be used at a different size, say $12\,$pt; then that
\\{down} instruction would move down $6\,$pt instead. Each dimension
must be less than $2~{24}$ in absolute value.
Device drivers processing \.{VF} files treat the sequences of |dvi| bytes
as subroutines or macros, implicitly enclosing them with |push| and |pop|.
Each subroutine begins with |w=x=y=z=0|, and with current font%|f| the
number of the first-defined in the preamble (undefined if there's no
such font). After the |dvi| commands have been
performed, the |h| and%|v| position registers of \.{DVI} format are restored
to their former values, and then |h| is increased by the \.{TFM} width
(properly scaled)---just as if a simple character had been typeset.
@d long_char=242 {\.{VF} command for general character packet}
@d set_char_0=0 {\.{DVI} command to typeset character 0 and move right}
@d set1=128 {typeset a character and move right}
@d set_rule=132 {typeset a rule and move right}
@d put1=133 {typeset a character}
@d put_rule=137 {typeset a rule}
@d nop=138 {no operation}
@d push=141 {save the current positions}
@d pop=142 {restore previous positions}
@d right1=143 {move right}
@d w0=147 {move right by |w|}
@d w1=148 {move right and set |w|}
@d x0=152 {move right by |x|}
@d x1=153 {move right and set |x|}
@d down1=157 {move down}
@d y0=161 {move down by |y|}
@d y1=162 {move down and set |y|}
@d z0=166 {move down by |z|}
@d z1=167 {move down and set |z|}
@d fnt_num_0=171 {set current font to 0}
@d fnt1=235 {set current font}
@d xxx1=239 {extension to \.{DVI} primitives}
@d xxx4=242 {potentially long extension to \.{DVI} primitives}
@d fnt_def1=243 {define the meaning of a font number}
@d pre=247 {preamble}
@d post=248 {postamble beginning}
@d improper_DVI_for_VF==139,140,243,244,245,246,247,248,249,250,251,252,
253,254,255
@ The character packets are followed by a trivial postamble, consisting of
one or more bytes all equal to |post| (248). The total number of bytes
in the file should be a multiple of%4.
%------------- and here's an extract from VPtoVF.web --------------------------
@* Property list description of font metric data.
The idea behind \.{VPL} files is that precise details about fonts, i.e., the
facts that are needed by typesetting routines like \TeX, sometimes have to
be supplied by hand. The nested property-list format provides a reasonably
convenient way to do this.
A good deal of computation is necessary to parse and process a
\.{VPL} file, so it would be inappropriate for \TeX\ itself to do this
every time it loads a font. \TeX\ deals only with the compact descriptions
of font metric data that appear in \.{TFM} files. Such data is so compact,
however, it is almost impossible for anybody but a computer to read it.
Device drivers also need a compact way to describe mappings from \TeX's idea
of a font to the actual characters a device can produce. They can do this
conveniently when given a packed sequence of bytes called a \.{VF} file.
The purpose of \.{VPtoVF} is to convert from a human-oriented file of text
to computer-oriented files of binary numbers. There's a companion program,
\.{VFtoVP}, which goes the other way.
@=
@!vpl_file:text;
@ @=
reset(vpl_file);
@ A \.{VPL} file is like a \.{PL} file with a few extra features, so we
can begin to define it by reviewing the definition of \.{PL} files. The
material in the next few sections is copied from the program \.{PLtoTF}.
A \.{PL} file is a list of entries of the form
$$\.{(PROPERTYNAME VALUE)}$$
where the property name is one of a finite set of names understood by
this program, and the value may itself in turn be a property list.
The idea is best understood by looking at an example, so let's consider
a fragment of the \.{PL} file for a hypothetical font.
$$\vbox{\halign{\.{#}\hfil\cr
(FAMILY NOVA)\cr
(FACE F MIE)\cr
(CODINGSCHEME ASCII)\cr
(DESIGNSIZE D 10)\cr
(DESIGNUNITS D 18)\cr
(COMMENT A COMMENT IS IGNORED)\cr
(COMMENT (EXCEPT THIS ONE ISN'T))\cr
(COMMENT (ACTUALLY IT IS, EVEN THOUGH\cr
\qquad\qquad IT SAYS IT ISN'T))\cr
(FONTDIMEN\cr
\qquad (SLANT R -.25)\cr
\qquad (SPACE D 6)\cr
\qquad (SHRINK D 2)\cr
\qquad (STRETCH D 3)\cr
\qquad (XHEIGHT R 10.55)\cr
\qquad (QUAD D 18)\cr
\qquad )\cr
(LIGTABLE\cr
\qquad (LABEL C f)\cr
\qquad (LIG C f O 200)\cr
\qquad (SKIP D 1)\cr
\qquad (LABEL O 200)\cr
\qquad (LIG C i O 201)\cr
\qquad (KRN O 51 R 1.5)\cr
\qquad (/LIG C ? C f)\cr
\qquad (STOP)\cr
\qquad )\cr
(CHARACTER C f\cr
\qquad (CHARWD D 6)\cr
\qquad (CHARHT R 13.5)\cr
\qquad (CHARIC R 1.5)\cr
\qquad )\cr}}$$
This example says that the font whose metric information is being described
belongs to the hypothetical
\.{NOVA} family; its face code is medium italic extended;
and the characters appear in ASCII code positions. The design size is 10
points, and all other sizes in this \.{PL} file are given in units such that
18 units
equals the design size. The font is slanted with a slope of $-.25$ (hence the
letters actually slant backward---perhaps that is why the family name is
\.{NOVA}). The normal space between words is 6 units (i.e., one third of
the 18-unit design size), with glue that shrinks by 2 units or stretches by 3.
The letters for which accents don't need to be raised or lowered are 10.55
units high, and one em equals 18 units.
The example ligature table is a bit trickier. It specifies that the
letter \.f followed by another \.f is changed to code @'200, while
code @'200 followed by \.i is changed to @'201; presumably codes @'200
and @'201 represent the ligatures `ff' and `ffi'. Moreover, in both cases
\.f and @'200, if the following character is the code @'51 (which is a
right parenthesis), an additional 1.5 units of space should be inserted
before the @'51. (The `\.{SKIP}~\.D~\.1' skips over one \.{LIG} or
\.{KRN} command, which in this case is the second \.{LIG}; in this way
two different ligature/kern programs can come together.)
Finally, if either \.f or @'200 is followed by a question mark,
the question mark is replaced by \.f and the ligature program is
started over. (Thus, the character pair `\.{f?}' would actually become
the ligature `ff', and `\.{ff?}' or `\.{f?f}' would become `fff'. To
avoid this restart procedure, the \.{/LIG} command could be replaced
by \.{/LIG>}; then `\.{f?} would become `f\kern0ptf' and `\.{f?f}'
would become `f\kern0ptff'.)
Character \.f itself is 6 units wide and 13.5 units tall, in this example.
Its depth is zero (since \.{CHARDP} is not given), and its italic correction
is 1.5 units.
@ The example above illustrates most of the features found in \.{PL} files.
Note that some property names, like \.{FAMILY} or \.{COMMENT}, take a
string as their value; this string continues until the first unmatched
right parenthesis. But most property names, like \.{DESIGNSIZE} and \.{SLANT}
and \.{LABEL}, take a number as their value. This number can be expressed in
a variety of ways, indicated by a prefixed code; \.D stands for decimal,
\.H for hexadecimal, \.O for octal, \.R for real, \.C for character, and
\.F for ``face.'' Other property names, like \.{LIG}, take two numbers as
their value. And still other names, like \.{FONTDIMEN} and \.{LIGTABLE} and
\.{CHARACTER}, have more complicated values that involve property lists.
A property name is supposed to be used only in an appropriate property
list. For example, \.{CHARWD} shouldn't occur on the outer level or
within \.{FONTDIMEN}.
The individual property-and-value pairs in a property list can appear in
any order. For instance, `\.{SHRINK}' precedes `\.{STRETCH}' in the above
example, although the \.{TFM} file always puts the stretch parameter first.
One could even give the information about characters like `\.f' before
specifying the number of units in the design size, or before specifying the
ligature and kerning table. However, the \.{LIGTABLE} itself is an exception
to this rule; the individual elements of the \.{LIGTABLE} property list
can be reordered only to a certain extent without changing the meaning
of that table.
If property-and-value pairs are omitted, a default value is used. For example,
we have already noted that the default for \.{CHARDP} is zero. The default
for {\sl every\/} numeric value is, in fact, zero, unless otherwise stated
below.
If the same property name is used more than once, \.{VPtoVF} will not notice
the discrepancy; it simply uses the final value given. Once again, however, the
\.{LIGTABLE} is an exception to this rule; \.{VPtoVF} will complain if there
is more than one label for some character. And of course many of the
entries in the \.{LIGTABLE} property list have the same property name.
@ A \.{VPL} file also includes information about how to create each character,
by typesetting characters from other fonts and/or by drawing lines, etc.
Such information is the value of the `\.{MAP}' property, which can be
illustrated as follows:
$$\vbox{\halign{\.{#}\hfil\cr
(MAPFONT D 0 (FONTNAME Times-Roman))\cr
(MAPFONT D 1 (FONTNAME Symbol))\cr
(MAPFONT D 2 (FONTNAME cmr10)(FONTAT D 20))\cr
(CHARACTER O 0 (MAP (SELECTFONT D 1)(SETCHAR C G)))\cr
(CHARACTER O 76 (MAP (SETCHAR O 277)))\cr
(CHARACTER D 197 (MAP\cr
\qquad(PUSH)(SETCHAR C A)(POP)\cr
\qquad(MOVEUP R 0.937)(MOVERIGHT R 1.5)(SETCHAR O 312)))\cr
(CHARACTER O 200 (MAP (MOVEDOWN R 2.1)(SETRULE R 1 R 8)))\cr
(CHARACTER O 201 (MAP\cr
\qquad (SPECIAL ps: /SaveGray currentgray def .5 setgray)\cr
\qquad (SELECTFONT D 2)(SETCHAR C A)\cr
\qquad (SPECIAL SaveGray setgray)))\cr
}}$$
(These specifications appear in addition to the conventional \.{PL}
information. The \.{MAP} attribute can be mixed in with other attributes
like \.{CHARWD} or it can be given separately.)
In this example, the virtual font is composed of characters that can be
fabricated from three actual fonts, `\.{Times-Roman}',
`\.{Symbol}', and `\.{cmr10} \.{at} \.{20\\u}' (where \.{\\u}
is the unit size in this \.{VPL} file). Character |@'0| is typeset as
a `G' from the symbol font. Character |@'76| is typeset as character |@'277|
from the ordinary Times font. (If no other font is selected, font
number~0 is the default. If no \.{MAP} attribute is given, the default map
is a character of the same number in the default font.)
Character 197 (decimal) is more interesting: First an A is typeset (in the
default font Times), and this is enclosed by \.{PUSH} and \.{POP} so that
the original position is restored. Then the accent character |@'312| is
typeset, after moving up .937 units and right 1.5 units.
To typeset character |@'200| in this virtual font, we move down 2.1 units,
then typeset a rule that is 1 unit high and 8 units wide.
Finally, to typeset character |@'201|, we do something that requires a
special ability to interpret PostScript commands; this example
sets the PostScript ``color'' to 50\char`\%\ gray and typesets an `A'
from \.{cmr10} in that color.
In general, the \.{MAP} attribute of a virtual character can be any sequence
of typesetting commands that might appear in a page of a \.{DVI} file.
A single character might map into an entire page.
@ But instead of relying on a hypothetical example, let's consider a complete
grammar for \.{VPL} files, beginning with the (unchanged) grammatical rules
for \.{PL} files. At the outer level, the following property names
are valid in any \.{PL} file:
\yskip\hang\.{CHECKSUM} (four-byte value). The value, which should be a
nonnegative integer less than $2^{32}$, is used to identify a particular
version of a font; it should match the check sum value stored with the font
itself. An explicit check sum of zero is used to bypass
check sum testing. If no checksum is specified in the \.{VPL} file,
\.{VPtoVF} will compute the checksum that \MF\ would compute from the
same data.
\yskip\hang\.{DESIGNSIZE} (numeric value, default is 10). The value, which
should be a real number in the range |1.0<=x<2048|, represents the default
amount by which all quantities will be scaled if the font is not loaded
with an `\.{at}' specification. For example, if one says
`\.{\\font\\A=cmr10 at 15pt}' in \TeX\ language, the design size in the \.{TFM}
file is ignored and effectively replaced by 15 points; but if one simply
says `\.{\\font\\A=cmr10}' the stated design size is used. This quantity is
always in units of printer's points.
\yskip\hang\.{DESIGNUNITS} (numeric value, default is 1). The value
should be a positive real number; it says how many units equals the design
size (or the eventual `\.{at}' size, if the font is being scaled). For
example, suppose you have a font that has been digitized with 600 pixels per
em, and the design size is one em; then you could say `\.{(DESIGNUNITS R 600)}'
if you wanted to give all of your measurements in units of pixels.
\yskip\hang\.{CODINGSCHEME} (string value, default is `\.{UNSPECIFIED}').
The string should not contain parentheses, and its length must be less than 40.
It identifies the correspondence between the numeric codes and font characters.
(\TeX\ ignores this information, but other software programs make use of it.)
\yskip\hang\.{FAMILY} (string value, default is `\.{UNSPECIFIED}').
The string should not contain parentheses, and its length must be less than 20.
It identifies the name of the family to which this font belongs, e.g.,
`\.{HELVETICA}'. (\TeX\ ignores this information; but it is needed, for
example, when converting \.{DVI} files to \.{PRESS} files for Xerox
equipment.)
\yskip\hang\.{FACE} (one-byte value). This number, which must lie
between 0 and 255 inclusive, is a subsidiary ident\-ifi\-ca\-tion of
the font within its family. For example, bold italic condensed fonts
might have the same family name as light roman extended fonts,
differing only in their face byte. (\TeX\ ignores this information;
but it is needed, for example, when converting \.{DVI} files to
\.{PRESS} files for Xerox equipment.)
\yskip\hang\.{SEVENBITSAFEFLAG} (string value, default is
`\.{FALSE}'). The value should start with either `\.T' (true) or `\.F'
(false). If true, character codes less than 128 cannot lead to codes
of 128 or more via ligatures or charlists or extensible characters.
(\TeX82 ignores this flag, but older versions of \TeX\ would only
accept \.{TFM} files that were seven-bit safe.) \.{VPtoVF} computes
the correct value of this flag and gives an error message only if a
claimed ``true'' value is incorrect.
\yskip\hang\.{HEADER} (a one-byte value followed by a four-byte value).
The one-byte value should be between 18 and a maximum limit that can be
raised or lowered depending on the compile-time setting of |max_header_bytes|.
The four-byte value goes into the header word whose index is the one-byte
value; for example, to set |header[18]:=1|, one may write
`\.{(HEADER D 18 O 1)}'. This notation is used for header information that
is presently unnamed. (\TeX\ ignores it.)
\yskip\hang\.{FONTDIMEN} (property list value). See below for the names
allowed in this property list.
\yskip\hang\.{LIGTABLE} (property list value). See below for the rules
about this special kind of property list.
\yskip\hang\.{BOUNDARYCHAR} (one-byte value). If this character appears in
a \.{LIGTABLE} command, it matches ``end of word'' as well as itself.
If no boundary character is given and no \.{LABEL} \.{BOUNDARYCHAR} occurs
within \.{LIGTABLE}, word boundaries will not affect ligatures or kerning.
\yskip\hang\.{CHARACTER}. The value is a one-byte integer followed by
a property list. The integer represents the number of a character that is
present in the font; the property list of a character is defined below.
The default is an empty property list.
@ Numeric property list values can be given in various forms identified by
a prefixed letter.
\yskip\hang\.C denotes an ASCII character, which should be a standard visible
character that is not a parenthesis. The numeric value will therefore be
between @'41 and @'176 but not @'50 or @'51.
\yskip\hang\.D denotes an unsigned decimal integer, which must be
less than $2^{32}$, i.e., at most `\.{D 4294967295}'.
\yskip\hang\.F denotes a three-letter Xerox face code; the admissible codes
are \.{MRR}, \.{MIR}, \.{BRR}, \.{BIR}, \.{LRR}, \.{LIR}, \.{MRC}, \.{MIC},
\.{BRC}, \.{BIC}, \.{LRC}, \.{LIC}, \.{MRE}, \.{MIE}, \.{BRE}, \.{BIE},
\.{LRE}, and \.{LIE}, denoting the integers 0 to 17, respectively.
\yskip\hang\.O denotes an unsigned octal integer, which must be less than
$2^{32}$, i.e., at most `\.{O 37777777777}'.
\yskip\hang\.H denotes an unsigned hexadecimal integer, which must be less than
$2^{32}$, i.e., at most `\.{H FFFFFFFF}'.
\yskip\hang\.R denotes a real number in decimal notation, optionally preceded
by a `\.+' or `\.-' sign, and optionally including a decimal point. The
absolute value must be less than 2048.
@ The property names allowed in a \.{FONTDIMEN} property list correspond to
various \TeX\ parameters, each of which has a (real) numeric value. All
of the parameters except \.{SLANT} are in design units. The admissible
names are \.{SLANT}, \.{SPACE}, \.{STRETCH}, \.{SHRINK}, \.{XHEIGHT},
\.{QUAD}, \.{EXTRASPACE}, \.{NUM1}, \.{NUM2}, \.{NUM3}, \.{DENOM1},
\.{DENOM2}, \.{SUP1}, \.{SUP2}, \.{SUP3}, \.{SUB1}, \.{SUB2}, \.{SUPDROP},
\.{SUBDROP}, \.{DELIM1}, \.{DELIM2}, and \.{AXISHEIGHT}, for parameters
1~to~22. The alternate names \.{DEFAULTRULETHICKNESS},
\.{BIGOPSPACING1}, \.{BIGOPSPACING2}, \.{BIGOPSPACING3},
\.{BIGOPSPACING4}, and \.{BIGOPSPACING5}, may also be used for parameters
8 to 13.
The notation `\.{PARAMETER} $n$' provides another way to specify the
$n$th parameter; for example, `\.{(PARAMETER} \.{D 1 R -.25)}' is another way
to specify that the \.{SLANT} is $-0.25$. The value of $n$ must be positive
and less than |max_param_words|.
@ The elements of a \.{CHARACTER} property list can be of six different types.
\yskip\hang\.{CHARWD} (real value) denotes the character's width in
design units.
\yskip\hang\.{CHARHT} (real value) denotes the character's height in
design units.
\yskip\hang\.{CHARDP} (real value) denotes the character's depth in
design units.
\yskip\hang\.{CHARIC} (real value) denotes the character's italic correction in
design units.
\yskip\hang\.{NEXTLARGER} (one-byte value), specifies the character that
follows the present one in a ``charlist.'' The value must be the number of a
character in the font, and there must be no infinite cycles of supposedly
larger and larger characters.
\yskip\hang\.{VARCHAR} (property list value), specifies an extensible
character. This option and \.{NEXTLARGER} are mutually exclusive;
i.e., they cannot both be used within the same \.{CHARACTER} list.
\yskip\noindent
The elements of a \.{VARCHAR} property list are either \.{TOP}, \.{MID},
\.{BOT} or \.{REP}; the values are integers, which must be zero or the number
or a character in the font. A zero value for \.{TOP}, \.{MID}, or \.{BOT} means
that the corresponding piece of the extensible character is absent. A nonzero
value, or a \.{REP} value of zero, denotes the character code used to make
up the top, middle, bottom, or replicated piece of an extensible character.